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☆ Election win for Russia-friendly party in Georgia sets the stage for protests and possible violence
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-28 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Citizens and Georgian Dream Party supporters, carrying flags of Georgia and the Georgian Dream Party, attend the Georgian Dream Party's election rally. Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty ImagesMass protests are expected in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi on Monday after the ruling, Russia-friendly party Georgian Dream claimed victory in a contentious parliamentary election this weekend. "We do not accept these stolen election results," stated Tina Bokuchava, the leader of Georgia's main opposition party, the United National Movement, at a press briefing late on Saturday. "It was a total fraud, a total taking away of your votes," Zourabichvili told reporters, flanked by Georgian opposition party leaders, in comments reported by Reuters. Supporters of the Georgian Dream party celebrate at the party's headquarters after the announcement of exit poll results in parliamentary elections, in Tbilisi, Georgia October 26, 2024.

Persons: that's, Salome Zurabishvili, Georgia's, Irakli Kobakhidze, Bidzina Ivanishvili, Tina Bokuchava, Vano Shlamov, Bokuchava, Bidzina, Zourabichvili, Timothy Ash, Ash, Ivanishvili, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Irakli Gedenidze, Antony Blinken, Blinken Organizations: Georgian Dream Party, Anadolu, Getty, Georgian, European Union, NATO, United National Movement, National Movement, Afp, Reuters, BlueBay Asset Management, Kremlin's, TASS, Google, OSCE Office, Democratic, Human, European Locations: Georgia, Georgian, Tbilisi, Russia, Soviet, Soviet Union, Russian, EU, Washington, Moscow, Europe, Tbilisi , Georgia, U.S

☆ Georgia faces an uncertain future as all sides claim election victory
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-26 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The Georgian Dream-supporting Imedi TV channel showed the ruling party winning 56%. Georgian Dream did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Members of an election commission count ballots at a polling station after the parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Oct. 26, 2024. Georgian Dream has drawn the ire of its Western allies for what they cast as its increasingly authoritarian bent. Sandro Dvalishvili, a 23-year-old Georgian Dream activist, told Reuters last week that Georgia would face “danger” if his party of choice was defeated at the polls.

Persons: Georgia Reuters —, Bidzina Ivanishvili, Ivanishvili, Tina Bokuchava, Mikheil Saakashvili, Ivanishvili’s, Bokuchava, “, Irakli Gedenidze, Salome Zourabichvili –, ”, Andronikashvili, George W, Bush, Kostya, Viktor Orban, Sandro Dvalishvili Organizations: Georgia Reuters, United National Movement, Reuters, ”, Party, EU, Georgian Locations: TBILISI, Georgia, South Caucasus, Georgian, Russia, Ukraine, Europe, Tbilisi, Soviet, Tbilisi’s, Tbilisi , Georgia, Moscow

☆ Georgia parliament overrides president to pass Kremlin-style ‘foreign agents’ bill, defying Western pressure
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-28 | by ( Christian Edwards | Niamh Kennedy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Georgia’s parliament has voted to override the presidential veto of a Russian-inspired “foreign agent” law, defying fierce protests at home and criticism abroad. The ruling Georgian Dream party has for weeks tried to force through the “foreign agent” law, likened by critics to a measure introduced in Russia to stifle dissent. Protesters stare down riot police outside the Georgian Parliament. Irakli Gedenidze/ReutersResponding to Tuesday’s vote, Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said it marked “a very sad day” for Georgia and the rest of Europe. But the government reintroduced the same bill in March and this time refused to cave to public pressure, despite a month of renewed protests.

Persons: CNN —, Salome Zourabichvili, “, I’m, Sen, Jeanne Shaheen, Irakli Gedenidze, Gabrielius Landsbergis, ”, Natalie Sabanadze, –, Sabanadze Organizations: CNN, European, Georgian, United, – Locations: Russian, Georgian, Russia, Soviet, European Union, United States, Georgia, New Hampshire, Europe

☆ 50,000 protest Georgia’s foreign agent bill as US sounds alarm over ‘Kremlin-style’ law
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —About 50,000 opponents of a “foreign agents” bill marched peacefully in heavy rain through the Georgian capital on Saturday, after the United States said the country had to choose between the “Kremlin-style” law and the people’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations. “Georgian parliamentarians face a critical choice – whether to support the Georgian people’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations or pass a Kremlin-style foreign agents’ law that runs counter to democratic values,” he said. Demonstrators protest against the foreign agents bill in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 11, 2024. Georgian Dream says the bill will promote transparency and Georgian national sovereignty. Demonstrators protest against the foreign agents bill in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 11, 2024.

Persons: “, ”, Jake Sullivan, Irakli Gedenidze, Nino, Vladimir Putin’s, Reuters Bidzina, Sullivan Organizations: CNN, House, Georgian, European, Reuters, Union, Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin, European Union, EU, NATO Locations: States, backsliding, Georgia, European Union, Tbilisi , Georgia, “, Russia, Europe, ”, Georgian, Tbilisi, United States

☆ Georgia rocked by protests as government pushes Putin-style ‘foreign agent’ bill
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —After spending his days making wine in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains, Tsotne Jafaridze returns home to Tbilisi, Georgia’s capital, and begins his new routine. Jafaridze, who also owns a travel business and says he receives 95% of his income from foreign sources, says he would “immediately” be listed as a foreign agent under the broadly-written law. But the government reintroduced the same bill in March and appears determined to force it through, despite protests that grow fiercer every week. Despite recent Russian aggression against Georgia, Georgian Dream has long been accused of harboring pro-Russian sympathies and its billionaire founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, made his fortune in the Soviet Union. Bidzina Ivanishvili addresses a rally in support of the "foreign agent" law in Tbilisi, April 29, 2024.

Persons: Jafaridze, ”, Vladimir Putin, “, Giorgi Arjevanidze, isn’t, ” Natalie Sabanadze, –, Levan Khabeishvili, Khabeishvili, Bidzina Ivanishvili, ” Buziashvili, Ivanishvili, Bidzina, Shakh, Sabanandze, Irakli Kobakhidze, Kobakhidze, ” Sabanadze, Viktor Orban, Europe’s, Matthew Miller, Washington, Georgia “, Irakli Gedenidze, Viktor Yanukovych, doesn’t Organizations: CNN, European Union, Getty, EU, United National Movement, National Security Council, Soviet Army, Soviet Union, Belarus ’, Party, Georgian, Conservative Political, United, State Department, Protesters, Reuters Locations: Caucasus, Tbilisi, Georgia’s, Russia, Georgian, Russian, Soviet, AFP, Brussels, Georgia, Belarus, Ukraine, Soviet Union, Hungary, Hungarian, United States, stoke, ”

☆ Georgia presses on with Putin-style ‘foreign agent’ bill despite huge protests
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Christian Edwards | Niamh Kennedy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Georgia’s government is attempting to force through a controversial “foreign agent” law, despite international condemnation and huge protests from its citizens. Critics of the law say is it is a Kremlin-inspired effort to undermine democracy which will damage Georgia’s bid to join the European Union. The ruling Georgian Dream party first tried to pass the bill 13 months ago, but was forced into an embarrassing climbdown following a week of intense protests. Nearly 80% of Georgians support European integration, according to a poll conducted in December by the National Democratic Institute. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, thousands of Russians – especially men of service age – have fled to Georgia to avoid conscription.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ” Salome Zourabichvili, Zourabichvili, –, Irakli Gedenidze, ” Giorgi Bekurashvili Organizations: CNN, European Union, South Caucasus, “, Kremlin, EU, National Democratic Institute Locations: Soviet, Europe, United States, Tbilisi, Georgian, Russia, South, Russian, “ Russia, Georgia, Ukraine

☆ Protesters in Georgia demand punishment for woman accused of defacing Stalin icon
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A large protest was held in Tbilisi on Saturday to demand harsh punishment for a woman accused of defacing a religious icon depicting Josef Stalin which was recently-installed in the Georgian capital, as tensions over the incident remained high. Thousands of Orthodox believers and supporters of the Alt-Info pro-Russian ultra-conservative movement gathered on Saturday in front of the country’s parliament before matching through the city in the direction of the cathedral. The icon is located at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi, Georgia. The police opened an investigation into “petty hooliganism” and questioned the woman who had damaged the icon. Flowers were placed by the icon on Saturday as believers lined up to kiss the part of it depicting Stalin.

Persons: Josef Stalin, Irakli Gedenidze, Stalin, St Matrona, ”, Flowers Organizations: CNN, Trinity Cathedral, Reuters, Alliance of Patriots, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Church Locations: Tbilisi, Georgia, Soviet, Russian, Georgian, Tbilisi , Georgia, Soviet Union, Moscow

☆ Karabakh refugees in Armenia face uncertainty and poverty in exile
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/5] Elada Sargsyan, 54, a refugee from Nagorno-Karbakh region, poses for a picture in a disused kindergarten, where she now lives temporarily along with dozens of other refugees from Karabakh, in the town of Masis, Armenia November 22, 2023. Born in the Azerbaijani capital Baku, Sargsyan fled her hometown in 1988, aged 19, as the Soviet Union began to fall apart. In 2020, they lost another home, when Azerbaijan - by now closely allied with Armenians' bête noire, Turkey - reconquered much of Karabakh including their village in a second war. Like many refugees, they have struggled to find work in Armenia. Alvina, a grandmother aged 65, has become the family’s main breadwinner, earning a little money selling homemade "jingalov hats" or "green bread", a flatbread stuffed with herbs that is a staple for Karabakh Armenians.

Persons: Elada Sargsyan, Irakli, Sargsyan, I’ve, they’ll, Masis, Alina Harutyunyan, Harutyunyan, I'd, Lilia Abrahamyan, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Soviet Union, Mount, Karabakh, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Masis, Armenia, Azerbaijan, MASIS, Baku, Soviet, Soviet Armenia, Aknaghbyur, Turkey, Armenia’s, Yerevan, Mount Ararat, Harutyunagomer, Ottoman Turks, Karabakh's, Vanadzor, Alvina

☆ World Court: Azerbaijan must let ethnic Armenians return to Nagorno-Karabakh
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTHE HAGUE, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Judges at the World Court on Friday ordered Azerbaijan to let ethnic Armenians who fled Nagorno-Karabakh in September return, and to keep the Armenians remaining in the enclave safe, as part of a set of emergency measures. Azerbaijan in September recaptured the region, then controlled by its ethnic Armenian majority despite being internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. The lightning offensive, after decades of enmity between Baku and Yerevan and a nine-month blockade of essential supplies by Baku, prompted the mass exodus of most of the region's 120,000 ethnic Armenians to neighbouring Armenia. Yerevan accused Azerbaijan of ethnic cleansing and asked the International Court of Justice, as the World Court is formally known, to issue emergency measures aimed at protecting the rights of ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan's foreign ministry said it had already pledged to ensure all residents’ safety and security, regardless of national or ethnic origin, and that it had not forced the ethnic Armenians to leave Karabakh.

Persons: Irakli, Joan Donoghue, Stephanie van den Berg, Nailia, Andrew Heavens, Hugh Lawson, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, HAGUE, International Court of Justice, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Baku, Yerevan

☆ Azerbaijan snubs Armenia meeting in Washington, accusing US of bias
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in a truck upon their arrival at the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 16 (Reuters) - Azerbaijan's foreign ministry said on Thursday it could not take part in a meeting with Armenia's foreign minister planned for Nov. 20 in Washington because of the "one-sided approach of the United States". Azerbaijan objected in particular to "one-sided and biased" comments on Wednesday by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. It complained that O'Brien did not mention that "for more than two months Armenia has not been responding" to Azerbaijani peace proposals. The Azerbaijani statement also said Washington was continuing to offer support to Armenia even though Armenia was "an aggressor and a destabilizing source in the region".

Persons: Irakli, Nikol Pashinyan, State James O’Brien, O'Brien, Washington, Ali Asadov, Kevin Liffey, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: REUTERS, Russia's TASS, U.S, State, House Foreign Affairs Committee, U.S ., Reuters, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Washington, United States, Baku, Azerbaijan, U.S, Tbilisi, Yerevan

☆ As Azerbaijan claims final victory in Nagorno Karabakh, arms trade with Israel comes under scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Max Saltman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

Israeli ‘realpolitik’Young ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh in the town of Goris during evacuations to Armenia on October 1. Hayk Baghdasaryan/Photolure/AP Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh drive to Goris on September 28. Vahan Stepanyan/PAN Photo/AP Volunteers distribute food to ethnic Armenians arriving in Goris from Nagorno-Karabakh on September 28. Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh line up to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Goris on September 26. Wezeman, the researcher at SIPRI, said Israel could come under pressure from its Western allies to reconsider arms sales to Azerbaijan.

Persons: CNN —, Marut Vanyan, “ I’m, ”, “, Vanyan, Leonid Nersisyan, Rishon Le, Jack Guez, …, Pieter Wezeman, ” Wezeman, Emmanuel Dunand, Efraim Inbar, ” Inbar, Israel ’, Inbar, LORA, ” Hikmet Ajiyev, Ilham Aliyev, realpolitik, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Sergey Astsetryan, Aziz Karimov, Hayk, Vahan Stepanyan, Vasily Krestyaninov, Alain Jocard, Anatoly Matlsev, David Harapetyan, Irakli Gedenidze, Reuters Greta, Anthony Pizzoferrato, Samantha Power, Power, Astrig Agopian, Novlet, David Ghahramanyan, Israel Organizations: CNN, Azerbaijan, Applied Policy Research Institute, Israel Aerospace Industries, IAI, Autonomous Robotics, Getty, Haaretz, Artsakh Defense Army –, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense, Israeli Ministry of Defense, Ovda Airport, Israel, Jerusalem Institute for Strategy, “, APRI, Artsakh Defense Army, Reuters, AP, Erebuni, PAN, AP Volunteers, Karabakh, Technologies, US Agency for International Development, Volunteers, Vehicles, Red Cross, People, Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Stepanakert, Karabakh’s, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Rishon, Tel Aviv, AFP, Israel’s, Artsakh, Israel, Stockholm, Baku, Lachin, Iran, Iranian, Jerusalem, Ottoman, Turkey, Ottoman Empire, APRI Armenia, Syunik, Nakhchivan, Republic of Armenia, Goris, Yerevan, Kornidzor, Russia, United States

☆ UN mission arrives in Nagorno-Karabakh as ethnic Armenian exodus continues
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in a truck upon their arrival at the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 1 (Reuters) - A United Nations mission arrived in Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday, Azerbaijani media reported, as a mass exodus of ethnic Armenians from the region continued following a lightning Azerbaijani military offensive last month. The mission, led by a senior U.N. aid official, is the global body's first access to the region in about 30 years. Armenia has asked the World Court to order Azerbaijan to withdraw all its troops from civilian establishments in Nagorno-Karabakh and give the United Nations access. The World Health Organisation on Sunday said well over 100,000 ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh had travelled to neighbouring Armenia.

Persons: Irakli, Hans Henri P Kluge, Alexander Marrow, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, United Nations, Court, International Court of Justice, World Health, Sunday, WHO, Office, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Europe

☆ More than 100,000 refugees arrive in Armenia as exodus swells
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region sit in a bus upon their arrival in the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 29, 2023. "Many are hungry, exhausted and need immediate assistance," Filippo Grandi, head of the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR, said on social media late on Friday. Italy said Armenia had asked the European Union for temporary shelters and medical supplies to help it deal with the refugees. "This exodus is already unbearable physically because we have already spent 16 hours on this road... Reporting by Emma Farge, Angelo Amante and Nailia Bagirova; Writing by Giles Elgood; Editing by Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Irakli, Filippo Grandi, Siranush Sargsyan, Sargsyan, Emma Farge, Angelo Amante, Giles Elgood, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, UNHCR, European Union, Armenia, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Italy, Azerbaijan, Republic of Artsakh, Soviet Union, Artsakh, Kalbajar

☆ Armenia seeks EU aid for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh, Italy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People gather near an aid center for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region in the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 29, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Armenia has asked the European Union for assistance to help it deal with refugees arriving from Nagorno-Karabakh since Azerbaijan took back control of the region last week, the office of Italy's prime minister said on Saturday. More than 100,000 refugees have arrived in Armenia since Azerbaijan launched a military operation to retake control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the head of the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said late on Friday. Armenia has asked the EU for temporary shelters and medical supplies, the Italian prime minister's office said in a statement, adding that Rome working to promote stabilisation in the region. Reporting by Angelo Amante Writing by Gianluca Semeraro Editing by Helen PopperOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Irakli, Angelo Amante, Gianluca Semeraro, Helen Popper Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, European Union, UNHCR, EU, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Republic of Artsakh, Soviet Union

☆ UN refugee agency readying for up to 120,000 refugees in Armenia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kavita Belani, UNHCR representative in Armenia, told a U.N. press briefing by video link that huge crowds of tired and frightened people were gathering at registration centres. "And when they come in, they're full of anxiety, they're scared, they're frightened and they want answers." It's very hard to predict how many will come at this juncture," she added in response to a question about refugee numbers. People gather near an aid center for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region in the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 29, 2023. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies representative Hicham Diab said there was a massive need for mental health support for refugees.

Persons: Kavita Belani, they've, Irakli, Regina De Dominicis, Hicham Diab, Carlos Morazzani, Emma Farge, Miranda Murray, Peter Graff Organizations: UNHCR, REUTERS, UNICEF, International Federation of Red, Red Crescent Societies, International Committee, Thomson Locations: GENEVA, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Kornidzor

☆ US to announce disaster response team for South Caucasus amid Karabakh crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Daphne Psaledakis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 28 (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday will announce it has deployed a Disaster Assistance Response Team in the South Caucasus region to coordinate the U.S. humanitarian response to the crisis after Azerbaijan took back control of Nagorno-Karabakh last week. "The United States is deeply concerned about the safety of vulnerable populations in Nagorno-Karabakh and the more than 50,000 people who have fled to Armenia," Power said in the statement. Power traveled to Armenia and Azerbaijan this week following Azerbaijan's defeat of the breakaway region's fighters in a conflict dating from the Soviet era. The Armenians are not accepting Azerbaijan's promise to guarantee their rights as the region is integrated. "Azerbaijan must protect civilians, uphold its obligations to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all individuals in its country, and ensure its forces comply with international humanitarian law," Power said.

Persons: Samantha Power, Irakli, Power, Ilham Aliyev, Daphne Psaledakis, Peter Graff Organizations: Agency for International Development, USAID, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, U.S . Agency for International Development, Karabakh, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, United States, South Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Soviet, Washington, Soviet Union

Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in a truck upon their arrival at the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 27, 2023. Earlier, Ethnic Armenian authorities in Karabakh said they were dissolving the breakaway statelet they had defended against Azerbaijan for three decades. Many of those leaving have said they fear persecution and ethnic cleansing at the hands of Azerbaijan. Suleymanov, who issued a call on social media appealing to ethnic Armenians to stay and be part of a multi-ethnic Azerbaijan, said he understood why many civilians were frightened, but that those who chose to stay would benefit from planned rebuilding and infrastructure projects. HISTORIC MONUMENTSKarabakh Armenians will enjoy the same rights and protections as other citizens of Azerbaijan, he said.

Persons: Irakli, there's, Elin Suleymanov, Suleymanov, we're, Andrew Osborn, Gareth Jones Organizations: REUTERS, Azerbaijan, Reuters, Baku, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Britain, Baku, Nakhchivan, Iran, Turkey

☆ More than half of Nagorno-Karabakh's ethnic Armenians have left
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in a truck upon their arrival at the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 27, 2023. Azerbaijan says it is prepared to respect ethnic Armenian rights as it reabsorbs the region, but with a history burdened by folk memories of alleged genocide, ethnic cleansing, pogroms and at least two wars, the Armenians are fleeing in fear. In Soviet times, Nagorno-Karabakh enjoyed autonomy within the Soviet republic of Azerbaijan. But as the Soviet Union crumbled the First Karabakh War erupted. About 30,000 people were killed between 1988 and 1994 and more than a million people displaced, more than half of them Azeris.

Persons: Aliyev Aliyev, David, Ruben Vardanyan, Nikol Pashinyan, Samantha Power, Ilham Aliyev, Guy Faulconbridge, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, USAID, Soviet, KARABAKH, Wednesday, Armenian, West, U.S . Agency for International Development, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Yerevan, Azerbaijan, South Caucasus, Soviet Union, Soviet, Russia, United States, Turkey, Iran, Ukraine, Moscow, Baku, Lachin

☆ Nagorno-Karabakh: Nearly half of the population has fled. What happens next?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Nearly half of Nagorno-Karabakh’s population has fled to Armenia, with many thousands more still scrambling to evacuate, a week after the breakaway region surrendered following a lightning Azerbaijani offensive. No Armenian will be left here within maybe two weeks,” a Karabakh resident told CNN. Nonna Poghosyan, the American University of Armenia’s program coordinator in Stepanakert, told CNN that her family realized this weekend that it was safer to leave than to stay. Residents told CNN before the latest offensive began that they would have to wait in line for hours to get their daily share of bread. Analysts told CNN before the evacuations began that they feared Azerbaijan might prevent certain members of the population from leaving.

Persons: –, Vasily Krestyaninov, Stepanakert, ”, Russia –, Olesya, “, Ilham Aliyev, Siranush Sargsyan, rakli Gedenidze, Farid Shafiyev, ” –, ” Aliyev, Nikol Pashinyan, Poghosyan, ’ ” Poghosyan, Poghosyan's, Nonna, Pashinyan, Samantha Power, Power, ” Vartanyan, Ruben Vardanyan, Vardanyan Organizations: CNN, Wednesday, Karabakh, Soviet Union, Russia, Refugees, International Relations, Armenia’s, American University of, United States Agency for International Development, USAID, Residents, US State Department, Crisis, ICRC Locations: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Azerbaijan’s, Baku, ”, Soviet Union, Soviet, Turkey, Russian, South Caucasus, Stepanakert, Kornidzor, Baku –, Artsakh, Republic of Armenia, Goris

☆ Azerbaijan arrests former top Karabakh minister as exodus tops 50,000
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Karabakh is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated mostly by ethnic Armenians who broke away in the 1990s in the first of two wars there since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Karabakh authorities said more than 50,000 had left so far, out of an estimated ethnic Armenian population of 120,000. Azerbaijan rejects Armenian accusations of ethnic cleansing, but images of tens of thousands of desperate people on the move have provoked widespread international alarm. Germany added its voice to U.S. calls for Azerbaijan to allow international observers into Karabakh. Karabakh authorities said they lost at least 200 people in Azerbaijan's offensive last week.

Persons: Ruben Vardanyan, Veronika Zonabend, Morris Tidball, Binz, Annalena Baerbock, Matthew Miller, Washington, Irakli, Ilham Aliyev, Zonabend, Miller, Vera Petrosyan, Daphne Psaledakis, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones, Philippa Fletcher, Alison Williams Organizations: Twitter, U.S . State Department, REUTERS, Reuters, Local, Russian, Russia, State, Washington, Thomson Locations: Azerbaijan Karabakh, Germany, GORIS, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Baku, Soviet Union, Kornidzor, Russia, Ukraine, Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, United States, Washington

☆ Armenian priest fears for Karabakh's Christian heritage amid mass exodus
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Azerbaijan launched a lightning offensive last week to retake the whole region, prompting a mass Armenian exodus. More than 50,000 people had crossed the border into Armenia by early Wednesday afternoon, nearly half of Karabakh's estimated 120,000 ethnic Armenians. Prior to last week's offensive, the Karabakh Armenians had lived under an effective 10-month Azerbaijani blockade which had led to chronic shortages of food, fuel and medicines. ANCIENT CHRISTIAN LANDConflict in the region between Armenians and Azeris goes back more than a century. There are churches in Azerbaijan which the authorities say are Caucasian Albanian rather than Armenians, something Armenians strongly dispute.

Persons: David, Irakli, Priest, Father David, Gareth Jones, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Christianity, Thomson Locations: Goris, Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, KORNIDZOR, Azerbaijan, Republic of Artsakh, Soviet Union, Baku, Shusha, Moscow, Russian, Armenia's, Albania, Albanian, Turkey, Iran, Ottoman Turks

☆ Tens of thousands of ethnic Armenians rush to flee Nagorno-Karabakh
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in the back of a truck as they arrive in the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 26, 2023. The hairpin mountain road snaking out of Karabakh towards Armenia was choked with people. There were conflicting details about the toll of the blast but the ethnic Armenian authorities said at least 68 had been killed, 105 were missing and nearly 300 were injured. "The Secretary urged President Aliyev to commit to broad amnesty and allow an international observer mission into Nagorno-Karabakh," Miller said. "President Ilham Aliyev underlined that respective activities are underway to ensure the rights of Armenian residents living in the Karabakh region," it said.

Persons: Irakli, GORIS, Vera Petrosyan, Ilham Aliyev, Nikol Pashinyan, Antony Blinken, Azerbaijan's Aliyev, Matthew Miller, Aliyev, Miller, Blinken, Guy Faulconbridge, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: REUTERS, Soviet Union, Reuters, Armenian, West, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Soviet South Caucasus, South Caucasus, Soviet, Askeran, Russia, United States, Turkey, Iran, Moscow

☆ In pictures: Karabakh's Armenians start to leave en masse for Armenia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[2/17]A refugee from Nagorno-Karabakh region is carried out of a vehicle upon arrival at a temporary accommodation centre in the town of Goris, Armenia, September 25. REUTERS/Irakli GedenidzeGORIS, ARMENIA

Organizations: REUTERS Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Goris, Armenia, GORIS, ARMENIA

☆ Exclusive: Senior US officials traveling to Armenia as Karabakh's Armenians start to leave
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Daphne Psaledakis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region arrive at a temporary accommodation centre in the town of Goris, Armenia, September 25, 2023. Power will meet with senior government officials and will "affirm U.S. support for Armenia’s democracy, sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity and commitment to address humanitarian needs stemming from Nagorno-Karabakh," the official said. Thousands of Karabakh Armenians have been left without food. In 2020, after decades of skirmishes, Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, won a 44-day Second Karabakh War, recapturing territory in and around Karabakh. That war ended with a Russian-brokered peace deal that Armenians accuse Moscow of failing to guarantee.

Persons: Irakli, Samantha Power, Yuri Kim, Nikol Pashinyan, Daphne Psaledakis, Donna Bryson, Michael Perry Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Biden, U.S, Reuters, U.S . Agency for International Development, . State, USAID, Karabakh, International Committee, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Goris, Armenia, Soviet, Europe, United States, Azerbaijan, Russia, Soviet Union, Turkey, Russian, Moscow

☆ Ethnic Armenians will leave Nagorno-Karabakh, adviser to their leader says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A view shows a border-crossing point on the frontier between Armenia and Azerbaijan and a base of Russian peacekeepers deployed in Nagorno-Karabakh as seen from a road near the village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 23, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Sept 24 (Reuters) - The ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh will leave for Armenia as they do not want to live as part of Azerbaijan and fear ethnic cleansing, the leadership of the breakaway region told Reuters on Sunday. 99.9% prefer to leave our historic lands," David Babayan, an adviser to Samvel Shahramanyan, the president of the self-styled "Republic of Artsakh". He said it was unclear when the 120,000 of Karabakh Armenians would move down the Lachin corridor. Those responsible for our fate will one day have to answer before God for their sins."

Persons: Irakli, David Babayan, Samvel Shahramanyan, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Republic, Artsakh

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